VAR op-ed in Sunday Times-Dispatch

06Jun2011

Posted by Andrew Kantor

This past weekend’s Richmond Times-Dispatch carried an op-ed by VAR CEO Scott Brunner, along with Mike Toalson (CEO of the Home Builders Association of Virginia) and Bruce Whitehurst (CEO of the Virginia Bankers Association).

The topic: potential regulation in Washington that will make it that much more difficult for even well-qualified people to buy a home.

[W]hen a new home is built in Virginia, more than 50 local companies are on the job in its acquisition, financing and construction. These aren’t short-term gains, either. National Association of Realtors data show that for every two homes sold, the equivalent of a full-time private-sector job is created.

And, although homeowners pay between 80 percent and 90 percent of all federal income taxes, it feels as though the very idea of homeownership is in the crosshairs of regulators and elected officials looking for easy fixes for not-so-simple problems.

And my favorite part:

The economy is improving, albeit slowly. Unemployment is on its way down, especially in Virginia. The stock market is rising. Consumer confidence is up.

Now is not the time to threaten those gains by jeopardizing property values, nor for dangerous and ill-advised financial experiments. We’re all in favor of responsible lending standards and affordable loans. But the current proposals have far too many drawbacks.